Why won t doctors prescribe antibiotics for vomiting and diarrhea?
Usually vomiting and diarrhea are caused by viruses and there are no anti-viral medicines to treat this. When vomiting and diarrhea are caused by bacteria, symptoms are much more severe (high fever and severe cramping, watery, frequent diarrhea that is often bloody). It is very important to culture the stool to know exactly what bacteria is causing the illness. Even when a bacteria is causing diarrhea, it can be dangerous to treat with antibiotics. Using antibiotics to treat a child with symptoms due to E. coli 0157:H7 bacteria (the bacteria acquired in “bad” hamburger, raw milk or some fresh fruits and vegetables which had been washed in contaminated water) can actually increase the risk of Hemolytic-Uremic Syndrome, a very serious illness that affects the kidneys and has caused death in young children. Using antibiotics to treat Salmonella can actually prolong the Carrier state (the time in which a person has recovered from the disease symptoms but can still spread the infection to o
